Houston residents will be among the first in the country to access the internet at faster-than-ever speeds. At least that's the promise.

Verizon recently announced it will bring a broadband-like version of its 5G wireless technology to the city sometime this year. The technology, heralded as the next generation of internet speeds, will make the process of loading websites, downloading songs and streaming movies at least 10 times faster than 4G.  

The carrier plans to bring the same type of fixed wireless 5G to Sacramento, California, and Los Angeles later this year and launch mobile 5G in select cities in 2019.  

CNN's parent company AT&T (T), along with Sprint (S) and T-Mobile (TMUS), have also set their sights on 5G. AT&T says it's on track to debut a small mobile 5G wifi hotspot device that fits in the palm of your hand. The device, which can be placed in homes or cars and provide 5G to mobile phones, is expected to launch in 12 cities by the end of 2018.  

While companies like Verizon are already experimenting with 5G, it likely won't replace 4G in the United States before 2020. But the efforts underway are laying the framework for a technology that could truly impact the way we access the internet in the future.